Tag: Ted Kurland Associates

Ted Kurland Associates

Spring 2012 intern and Music Business Management major Avi Serfaty reflects on four months interning at boutique booking agency Ted Kurland Associates. In part II of his previous post, Avi describes the describes how his internship has paid off and provides targeted advice for future interns

What I started to love about our agency was how close-knit everyone was. I believe everyone there was genuinely interested in what I was trying to do, and eventually proved to be very helpful. David Greenberg put me in touch with several people he knows in Los Angeles before I made a trip out there a few weeks ago, for a job hunt. My advice to students, who are interested in securing a job after their internship is to network and build relationships within your company. Do not assume everyone is happy to give you their connections, but if you are nice and wait for it to come, I believe most people will be willing to see you get further. Do not come out and ask if your supervisor “knows anyone” in Los Angeles, or New York, etc. Wait until you feel you have an honest connection with the person, and it will not be uncomfortable.

Another issue I want to address is the timing of your internship. I figured I would save time, and do mine during my last semester. It turned out to be more than all right, although a job opening did come up during my first few weeks, which I had to turn down. Mr. John Kellogg advised that I wait to finish school before starting my internship, and as previously stated, for good reason. You can take every music business class offered, but the most important part is the real-world application and experience. Interning is what gives potential employers the confidence to hire you.

My four months at Ted Kurland Associates in Allston, MA, have been a tremendous learning experience. After finishing my internship, the only regret I have is that I did not do more than one! Ted Kurland Associates is a boutique booking agency, with a client roster containing the world’s top jazz and blues recording artists. Some of the artists I have had the pleasure of doing work for include Pat Metheny, Chick Corea, Jon Anderson of Yes, Stanley Clarke, Soul Rebels, and more.

The person directly in charge of my day-to-day work at TKA was David Greenberg, the Director of Marketing. Mr. Greenberg was an outstanding guy to work with. He was completely down to earth, funny, and easy to talk to. Not only was he a nice person to hang out with, but he also happened to be very smart, and had great marketing ideas. He also taught me a lot about developing artists, and show promotion.

At a school which fosters musical creativity like Berklee, students occasionally lose interest when we explain that most of our internships take place in a business setting- particularly if the student’s major or personal career goals are centered around performing. You can almost see them thinking, “Right. I want to stand up on a stage, not sit behind a desk. I think I’ll pass…”

It’s an understandable reaction when a student is (and should be) so engrossed in their music. That’s the most important thing, right? Of course. But ask any (successful) musician and they’ll tell you that being a professional, earning performer requires a surprising amount of business finesse.

It makes sense, doesn’t it? As a performer you’re running a small business, selling your music and yourself as products. You’ll handle contracts, build professional relationships, and perhaps produce, market and sell your own work. To see what I mean, check out this interview by one of our former interns, Gary Lazzara, when he interviews Berklee grad and Black Eyed Peas collaborator Keith Harris. Even if you outsource these necessary tasks, you leave yourself in the trust and mercy of promoters, marketers and agents.

With the way the industry is shifting these days, the tendency leans more and more towards a do-it-yourself model. So you better know at least a little bit about those aspects of your future career that aren’t exactly musical in nature. And what better place to learn the tricks and traps of the trade than from the inside? Why not work at a marketing company, a venue or a booking agent to learn skills for yourself and become a wise consumer of those services?

Ted Kurland Associates is a top Boston agency which books for the likes of Pat Metheny, Keith Jarrett, Chick Corea, Miles Davis and Sonny Rollins. See what their Director of Marketing, David Greenberg has to say about getting the inside info (1:23) during a recent interview:

Being the only intern at my site who is here four days a week (the other five only come in once or twice a week at the most), I get to see most of the intern-supervisor interactions that occur and have, in the back of my mind, compiled a “what not to do at your internship/job” list, which of course, will prove very beneficial both in the short and long run.
Do whatever your supervisor tells you to do – Put yourself in their shoes. What the heck do you think their impression of you is if the “super-subordinate” (remember, there is nobody lower than you in the pecking order if you are an intern and very few if you’ve just started at an entry-level job) questions every task they are given? If supervisors had time, or could be bothered to do it themselves, they wouldn’t be hiring interns to call up companies to source some really obscure doodad. What you should do is to look at it as practice for interacting with people on a more formal level. Nobody is ever “comfortable” calling up strangers.

Beginning January 6th, David Greenberg, Director of Marketing for Ted Kurland Associates, will be contributing a series of posts to kick off the internship blog for the upcoming Spring 2011 semester. Be sure to check back as David shares his insights and experience of how to succeed as a student, musician and businessperson entering the music industry in a tough economy.